About Speaking of Diabetes

Speaking of Diabetes is produced by Joslin Diabetes Center for people with diabetes and those who care for them..

Joslin Diabetes Center, a teaching and research affiliate of Harvard Medical School, is a one-of-a-kind institution on the front lines of the world epidemic of diabetes - leading the battle to conquer diabetes in all forms through cutting-edge research and innovative approaches to clinical care and education.

It’s likely that sometime this winter you were sick – or will get sick. Whether it’s a cold or the flu, this season seems to be when illness strikes. When you’re living with diabetes and you get sick, your blood-sugar levels will likely go up. This can alter your normal diabetes-treatment routine. Because of this, you need to think about what you would do, if and when you get sick, before your first cough or sore throat.

Make a sick-day plan with your diabetes specialist. This may include a special meal plan for when you are having trouble keeping food down. Most medications won’t have an effect on your diabetes, but some will.

Use caution with some antihistamines such as Allegra (fexofenadine hydrochloride) and Bumex (bumetanide) because they can affect heart and blood pressure.

Those with diabetes should avoid taking medications containing sugar, such as sucrose, dextrose, fructose, lactose and honey. Also, choose products with little or no alcohol.

Finally, the new cough medicines just plain don’t work especially if you have something like bronchitis. So, based on a long conversation with my doc, I concluded ceasing the coughing (which in and of itself with screw up blood sugar) is more important and she now gives me a script for cough medicine. She said it is the only thing she gives her kids!!! So, that’s how strongly she feels OTC cough medicine has become useless.

When will those who write or discuss diabetes issues to remember that each type of diabetes is often treated slightly different! The cough medicine I use as a Type 1 diabetic is Robitussin, Sugar Free, that does not raise my BG at all. For other Type 1s this brand may NOT be best for them. I checked with my endocrinologist and found the brand that worked best for me – others should do the same.

For Type 1 diabetics testing frequently, especially when ill, helps to keep the BG in control.

Golly, I thought Joslin would know that specifying the type of diabetes in any article, would be far more helpful to all diabetics and far less confusing.

My daughter has only been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes for 10 mos. She has only been sick once so far and I gave her Hyland’s 4kids sugar free (homeopathic)alcohol free cold and cough syrup and it didn’t change her blood sugar lever at all. I recommend it for mom’s with kids ages 2 to 12 years old. ☺